On the way back from Rome to Tashkent, Karimov spoke to journalists travelling with him in the aircraft. He said that he was pleased with the results of the visit and added: "We want to invite more Italian companies and firms to operate in Uzbekistan, and we should provide Italian businessmen with the necessary information about Uzbekistan's market and economy."

Stressing the significance of the agreement on cooperation between the governments of the two countries in fighting organized crime, terrorism and drugs, Karimov said: "It is of great importance for us to sign such a document with Italy... It will be a great achievement for us if we have more partners in the fight."

Karimov also spoke about convertibility, saying: "Italian Foreign Minister Lamberto Dini said that Italy needed 22 years to settle the issue of convertibility... We have been working jointly with the IMF in this issue... Italy needed 20 years, and we have been working on this for nine years. We do not need much longer; we need another three to five years. We will settle the issue of convertibility step by step."

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n agreement on the procedure for running a special shuttle container train was signed between the Ozbekiston Temir Yollari [Uzbek railways] state joint-stock railway company and the Islamic Republic of Iran railways.

The document, signed in Tehran, will reduce the time of freight delivery, the more efficient use of the fleet of containers and carriages, and increasing cargo transit, the head of the department for transportation services at the Uzbek railways, Farhod Jalalov, has told a Turkiston Press national news agency correspondent.

The train is expected to make its first pilot run on 10th January 2001. The route from the Akaltyn station in Uzbekistan's [central] Syrdarya Region passes through the Turkmen-Iranian border station of Serakhs to the Iranian station of Bandar-e Abbas. One of the advantages of the container trains is that the freight they carry will reach its destination without having to be shipped by trucks. Moreover, the cost of container transit and transportation is much lower than other transportation services.

Jalalov said that Uzbek businessmen had shown interest in the new railway route and were ready to use it to supply cotton and cotton products to Iran. The special train will initially have around 26 carriages (with two containers on each) and cover the route once a week. It will take the train 84 hours to travel along that route from the Akaltyn station to its final destination.

Our counterpart in neighbouring republics have also shown interest in this direct container transportation project, Jalalov said. A protocol has now been signed on cooperation in this field with the Kazakhstan Temir Zholy [Kazakhstan railways] company, which also agreed to allow an Almaty-Tehran-Istanbul container train to make its first pilot run through its territory. Among those interested in this are also Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan which plan to join the new route in the southern sections of their railway.

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It should be noted that the company headed by Kim Yun-sik exports to Uzbekistan consumer goods and steel braids used in baling cotton. The Tashkent-based Sindong Enercom Inc-Tashkent enterprise of this company produces fabrics and clothes. A similar enterprise is also to be set up in Andizhan [eastern Uzbekistan].

At the meeting, Kim Yun-sik gave 3,400,000 Korean wons on behalf of his company and the association. The sum will be used to finance programmes and projects to save the Aral Sea and to improve the ecological state of the Aral Sea area.

The head of the company said at the meeting that this sum was the first stage of the humanitarian aid the association and Sindong Enercom were planning to give the victims of the Aral Sea crisis. He also said that his company was also planning to allocate 10m dollars to restore the running water systems in Nukus and Urgench [in Karakalpakstan and Khorezm Region].

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The term in office of Mr Rosenberg was extended in response to the assurances of the Uzbek government and the Central Bank of Uzbekistan that serious economic reforms would be carried out in the nearest future, as well as in response to the request to Mr Rosenberg to render assistance with these reforms.

A new IMF permanent representative will arrive in Uzbekistan as soon as the government begins to carry out the programme supported by the IMF. At present an IMF mission headed by the Director of the European II Department, Mr Life Hansen, is staying in the country with the purpose of conducting annual consultations.

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